Music Fridays

No Time. I want to post but just don't have the time or energy at the moment. Had another Music Fridays post all in my head too but alas its not to be.

So quick quick thing before I jet. I started before work and its not Saturday yet so its still music Fridays lol.

After abandoning their format of having two Strictly the Best volumes, one with more of the faster dancehall vibes and the other with more of the slower culture stuff, last year it looks like VP records is going to return with two volumes, volumes 33 and 34, this year.

I'm glad cause last years really sucked. It just wasn't a well put together cd considering how solid the Strictly the Best series used to be.

Oh and one of the wickedest things about the Strictly the Best series is the album covers. Every year it features a dancehall scene and they are always pretty nice.

On another note has anyone noticed that the T dot rnb scene is blazing these days? Well at least in terms of cd releases. Underground legends like Jully Black, Melanie Durant and Divine Brown have dropped albums all within the last few months as have Andrea Lewis and Toya Alexis. Y'all remember Toya Alexis right. Sistren from Ajax who did two reality shows (first the one that produced Sugar Jones and then Canadian Idol) and didn't go anywhere. Yo she was straight up robbed on Canadian idol first season but then the kids who were voting were voting for the pretty boys while is why that hack Ryan Malcolm won that year. Needless to say I haven't watched the show since.

Anyway can T dot and Canada support that many rnb divas? Their albums are selling mighty cheap even in HMV. Can they even go aluminum? How about copper? Don't get me wrong all the sisters are talented. I've only heard the Divine Brown and Jully Black (my favorite) albums and they are on par with the US output but like everything in the music business it usually comes down to promotion. Are these singers being promoted? I mean I didn't even know Toya Alexis had an album until I went into a record store the other day and just sort of saw it on the shelves.

Talent is one thing, marketing is another. I'm happy that these ladies have all been able to drop some product on the market and I wish them well but I would really hate to see their efforts flop because of poor marketing. Next thing you know their careers would be over and through no fault of theirs.

I mean T dot's hip hop artists have done their thing for a while now. Back in the day we had Maestro and Michie now its Kardi and K-os and to some extent big Sauk, Choclair, Brassmunk and quite a few others. Its booming actually.Everytime I'm on Yonge or Bloor street some kid doing the hip hop entrepreneurial bit comes up to me trying to get me to check out his music. Maybe these ladies need to do their own bit of hip hop promotions for their rnb releases.

Anyway big up to the T dot rnb ladies and I hope y'all have some success with your albums. Like I said I've only heard the Jully Black and the Divine Brown so far and I like what I've heard. Actually Jully reminds me of Mary before she got happy. You know that grimy street singing feel.

Divine Brown has a rich soulful voice and her "Old Skool love" track sounds like a throwback to the 60s. Anyone remember R Kelly's Turn back the Hands of Time which you would swear was recorded in like 1965 well that's the same type of vibe Divine has on Old Skool Love. Didn't realize there was a video until I peeped the site.

Toya can just flat out sing. I haven't heard any of this stuff but I know home girl has some serious pipes. Melanie Durrant (I think she's west indian, probably Trini) has sort of an artsy vibe from going on that one single she did way back with Mr Com to the Sense and Andrea Lewis' first single just sounds like fun. By the way I swear I have met her somewhere and I'm not just saying that because I remember her from tv cause I've never watched Degrassie ever. Oh wait a minute she's only 19. Ok too young for who I'm thinking of but I swear I've met like her older twin or something back in the day.


Oh and finally catching up with some comments from last week it wasn't my intention to just throw in the bit about Rhianna or to not mention her for so long. Problem was I've got a half finished blog somewhere from a few months back where I mentioned her and it just never got posted. Yea it was another one of those attempts to teach y'all some bajan like the Two Words post but I just wasn't feeling it. I may have to do a week of half finished blogs. Hey Chappell did it in Season two why not.

11:50 and I'm home free. Cut it close but made it.

Till next music Friday.